MONTGOMERY -- A legislative committee today approved four anti-abortion bills that sponsors promised would curb abortions, but opponents labeled them unconstitutional, medically unsound and an intrusion by government into family decisions.

The bills would:

- Require a physician to perform an ultrasound on a woman seeking an abortion, display the images to her and explain them before performing the abortion.

- Limit the use of the "morning after drug" to induce abortions, while requiring physicians to follow strict guidelines in the use of the drug.

- Define "persons" in state law to mean "all humans from the moment of fertilization." The American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama said it would sue the state if that bill becomes law.

- Opt Alabama out of health insurance exchanges under the new federal health law. That would mean the state wouldn't be obligated to pay for abortions.

Sen. Clay Scofield, R-Albertville, sponsor of the ultrasound bill, said the measure was aimed at reducing abortions.

"One of the ways we can reduce abortion is through education, and this bill does just that," he said. "It allows the woman to see that it's a living being."

Scofield said a doctor would be required to display the parts of the embryo or fetus to the woman. He said, however, the woman could "avert her eyes" and hear a detailed description of the fetus.

Though Alabama and other states have passed measures requiring women to have ultrasounds, Scofield's bill goes further, mandating that a doctor set up the monitor so the woman can see it and describe the heart, limbs and organs of the fetus.

An identical bill was passed by the Oklahoma Legislature a year ago, but a lawsuit filed in state court by the Center for Reproductive Rights has enjoined the state so far from enforcing it.

"It has one purpose, which is to shame," she said. "It's shaming people who have already gone through a very difficult decision-making process."

Turner said that, if Scofield's bill is enacted into law, the ACLU would seriously consider challenging it in court.

Another bill by Sen. Gerald Allen, R-Tuscaloosa, would require doctors to follow guidelines in administering an abortion-inducing drug known as RU-486. Allen said it also would stop women from ordering the drug on the Internet.

The measure would require a woman receiving the drug to have a "signed contract" with a doctor who agrees to handle any complications that might arise from using the drug. It also sets a schedule for in-person doctor visits by the woman.

Turner said that bill is "seriously dangerous for the health of women" who might have tubal pregnancies in which the egg settles in the fallopian tube.

She said if the bill passes, abortion-inducing drugs would no longer be able to be used to end tubal pregnancies. "Women with life threatening pregnancies would be condemned to undergo surgery or leave the state," said Turner. "Surgery is much more likely to cause fertility problems."

Sen. Linda Coleman, D-Birmingham, the only woman on the 10-person committee, noted she was the only member on the panel who had the "type plumbing" to uniquely appreciate the abortion issue. "I don't think you need to be trying to regulate my body," she said.

Kay Scott, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Southeast, criticized Sen. Craig Reed, R-Jasper, chairman of the committee, for refusing to allow public hearings on the bills.

"It appears under the new leadership, the rules are so rigid that they prohibit public input," she said.

There are more than a dozen bills addressing abortion issues pending in the Legislature.